Air-controlling valve.



No. 657,896. Patented Sept. II, I900.

E. "L. ROWE- AIR CONTROLLING VALVE.

(Application fllei Mar. 1 1888.) (No Model.) 3 Sheets-$heet I.

THE NORRIS Pnvfico, PMoTo-Lwua. WASNINGTON, o. c.

Patented Sept. II, I900.

E. L. ROWE.

AIR CONTROLLING VALVE.

(Application filed Mar. 1, 1899.)

(No Model.)

3 Sheets8heet 2 Q/Vifnewea WWW ' (futon W13 m: Munms PETERS co.wcfouflwu wnsmmmm, o. c.

Patented Sept. ll, I900.

E. L. ROWE.

AIR CONTROLLING VALVE.

(Application filed Mar. 1, 1899.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

ELLIS L. ROWE, OF TROY, NEW YORK.

AlR-CONTROLLiNG VALVE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 657,896, datedSeptember 11, 1900.

Application filed, March 1. 1899. eliit]. NO. 707,343- (No model.)

lb all 1071,0777, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELLIS L. ROWE, of Troy, in the countyof Rensselaerand State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Air-Controlling Valves; and I hereby declare that the following is afull, clear, and exactdescription thereof, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, which form part of this specification.

This invention is an improvement in aircontrolling valves for use inconnect-ion with water-s11 pply systems or other apparatus wherein it isdesired to control the admission and egress of air as may be required bythe ebb and flow of water in the pipes of such system or apparatuswithout permitting waste of the fluid. Such valves are particularlydesigned for use in steel-riveted Water-pipe lines to take care of theair under any and all conditions which arise in practice in thisdepartment of hydraulic engineering.

As shown, the valve is more particularly an improvement upon theautomatic air-valve shown in the patent to Gubelinan, No. 567,093, ofSeptember 1, 1896.

These valves are designed to automatically let air out of the pipe orconduit while it is being filled with water and to also automaticallylet air into the pipe when from any cause the water is suddenlypartially or wholly withdrawn therefrom. These valves are usually placedat the most elevated points on the line, and consequently the suddenwithdrawal of a large quantity of water from the pipe at a lower pointwould create a vacuum therein unless provision is made to admitairthereto, and such a vacuum would cause the collapse and ruin of thepipe-lines or other apparatus of similar nature unable to withstand theexterior pressure due to the vacuum created therein. These air-valvesalso facilitate the filling of the pipes and prevent the formation ofair-cushions or hammers therein by permitting the air to escape freelyuntil the water rises to and closes the valves. These are the mostimportant oflices of such valves, and the Gubelman valve referred toperforms such offices satisfactorily under all normalconditions ofoperation; but it has been found in the practical use of this class ofvalves that they do not meet all the requirements of working in such asystem and that when once closed under high pressure they may remainclosed while cushions of compressed air are formed in the pipes. Thesetrappedaircushionsseriouslyinterfere with the operation of thewater-main, and some means for providing against the formation ormaintenance of such air-cushions and of count-eractingtheill effectthereof has been demanded by hydraulic engineers.

The air-valves are, as stated, placed at high points in the pipe-linesfor the purpose of controlling air; but after they have once permittedall air in the pipe to escape and are closed by the water-pressure it isfound that air Will collect under the same pressure as the water at thehigher points in the line, this air entering in minute quantities withthe Water. As is well known, all flowing water is more or less aerated,and more or less air will separate from the water and collect in-thevalve-chambers under the same pressure as the water itself, andtherefore as this separated air increases in volume it may force thewater entirely out of the valve chamber and back in the main pipe whileholding the air-valves securely closed, owin to the compression of suchair.

The principal object of the present invention, therefore, is to improvethis class of airvalves generally, and the Gubelmau valve in particular,by employing in connection therewith an auxiliary automatic reliefvalvewhich will be normally closed by the presence of water in thevalve-chamber, but will be automatically opened when an excessive orabnormal amount of compressed air accumulates in the valve-casing.

Another object of the invention is to improve the construction'of saidvalves by reducing the height thereof, so that they can be used atpoints Where it will be inconvenient or impossible to bury the pipe-lineat a great depth.

Theinvention consists in the improved construction of the automaticair-valves and also in the details of construction of said valves andthe auxiliary valve hereinafter described and claimed, and illustratedin the accompanyi ng drawings, forming part of this specification, towhich I refer by letters of reference marked thereon.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the valve casing, showing the hood andthe gate-valve connections, the hood being partly in section. Fig. 2 isan enlarged longitudinal vertical sectional view through the valve. Fig.3 is a top plan view thereof with the protectinghood removed. Fig. 4: isa top plan view of the bottom plate of the casing. Fig. 5 is an enlargeddetail View of one of the automatic air-valves and indicating also aslight mo'dification of the construction of the casing.

The Valve-casing, as shown, is formed with a main air-valve chamber Aand with an airtrappingchamberA opposite,butrisin-gabove the top of theair-valve chamber. These two chambers may be formed in one top casting Aand one base-casting a, bolted to the baseflange of the upper casting,as indicated in the drawings, said base-casting being provided with aninlet a in the central line of the valve-chamber, which inlet may besurrounded eXteriorly by a flanged collar a by which the valve-casingmay be bolted to the top flange of a gate-valve L, it being usual,however, to inter-pose a gate-valve between the air-valve and thepipeline, so that in case of accident to the air-valve the gatevalve canbe closed and the air-valve repaired without interfering with the flowof water in the pipe-line. As shown, there is also a central opening Ain the top of the valve-chamber, connecting with a pipe E, which pipemay be provided with an ordinary gate-valve M, which can be opened byhand in case of emergency. The arrangement of gate-valves above andbelow the air-valve chamber is common in the art and forms no part ofthe present invention. In the top of said valve-chamber A is a series ofvent-openings closed bya series of air-valves B, which are invertedcup-shaped valves closed at their upper ends and provided with verticalstems B, that extend through tubular guides b, attached to spiders b,which are secured in the vent-openings in the top wall of thevalvechamber, as shown, and are provided with valve-seats b againstwhich the upper ends of the valves B are adapted to seat when the valvesare closed.

Springs 0 are interposed between collars c on the guides b and washers con the upper ends of stems B, these washers being adjustable on thestetn by means of nuts B on the upper ends of the stems, as shown, sothat the valves can be practically suspended on the springs, the tensionof which is so adj usted as to approximately sustain the weight of thevalve without closing the latter. The springs 0 should be made ofphosphor-bronze or other non-corrodible spring metal.

Below but near the lower open ends of the valves B when said valves areopen is a baffie plate or plates D, which are adapted to prevent violentoutflow of air closing the valves, which will remain open untilpractically all the air is forced out of the valve-chamber, and then theair trapped in the hollow valves gives them suflicient buoyancy in thewater supported by ribs D.

to easily and gently close them against their seats.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 4, the baffle-plate D is cast integral with thebase-casting a, being raised from the floor thereof and properlyAsindicated in Fig. 5, the side walls of the val ve-chamber are formedintegral with the bottom casting instead of being formed in the topcasting, as in Fig. 2, and in this case the baffle-plates D may be alsocast integral with the side walls of the chamber and supported by a webD While I consider the formation of the baffle-plates integral with thecasing as part of my present invention, I do not limit myself to theemployment of integral plates in connection with the air-valves, asbaiiie-plates might be suspended from the top of the valve-chamber, asin the Gubelman patent aforesaid, for example.

The valve guides, stems, and springs above the top of the valve chamberare protected by a hood E, whichis preferablyapan-shaped casting formedin similar halves E, which are provided with lugs E by which they can beunited by bolts E as shown, each half being also provided on its underside with vertical supporting-lugs E by which the hood is kept inposition over the air-valves, so as to permit free circulation of air toand from the valves, while at the same time protecting them against theWeather and accidental injury.

It is desirable in some instances to have the air-valve as flat aspossible, and the form which I have illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 isespecially designed to provide a very low valve particularly adapted foruse where the wat er-pipes lie near the surface of the ground at thepoint where such air-valve is to be located while the valve-chamber isvery low. The effective automatic action of the airvalves is maintainedby making the cupvalves of greater diameter, so as to contain asufficient quantity of water to cause the closing thereof at the propertime, as above described.

The construction thus far described forms a most efficient automaticair-valve for controlling the admission and egress of air under thenormal working conditions of the system; but the most important part ofmy invention is the combination, with such air-valve, of means formaintaining its efiiciency under abnormal conditions and preventingformation or maintenance of injurious compressedair cushions in thesystem. This means consists in a small automatic relief-valve which maybe of any suitable construction; but I prefer a float-operated valve, ashereinafter described. 1

In the top of the valve-chamber is a small opening F, which may beformed by a small tube F. The inner end of this opening is normallyclosed, however, by means of a flap or cushion valve f, which ispreferably a pad of rubber or fiber secured to the head of a bolt f bymeans of a coupling-nut f, as

IIS

shown in Fig. 3, the bolt f being secured to a lever G near the pivotthereof, said lever being adapted to swing vertically, and is pivoted tothe bifurcated head it of a bolt H, projecting through the side wall ofthe valve and secured by nuts 7t, as shown. This construction enablesthe valve f to be accurately adjusted to close the opening F; but I donot limit myself to the particular constructio of the valve shown, norto the particular connection of the lever G to the side wall f thvalve-casing, except where specifically referred toin theclaims.TheleverGe-Xtends transversely into .the chamber A Where its extremityis connected to a float G, which is preferably made hollow and of verylight seamless copper, like other floats used for like purposes. Thefloat G may be connected to the lever at such a point that it will openthe relief-valve when sufficient air is accumulated in the chamber A andvalve-casing to force the water to or just below the level of the innerend of tube F.

On top of the valve-casing, around the upper end of opening F, is avertical flange A by which any water escaping through opening F isdirected off the top of the valve-casing and kept away from any'of theair-valve openings. The diameter of opening F is preferably quite small,as it is not intended that this relief-valve shall affect the operationof the automatic air-valve under normal Working condition of theapparatus, the object of this relief-valve being to relieve abnormalaccumulations of air in the valve-chamber. Under ordinary conditionswhen the pipes are properly filled with water the valve-chamher A andchamber A will contain so much water that float G will be upheld andcause valve f to close opening F. There will always he a small body ofair trapped in the upper part of chamber A as the valve-casing is set ina horizontal position and there is no outlet from the chamber A abovethe top of the main air-valves B. Vhen the system is first filled withwater, the valves B are closed by the pressure of water thereagainst;but more or less of the air contained in the water will separatetherefrom and will naturally collect at the highest point, which is chamber A Of course this air is compressed to a degree equal to the head ofwater and will therefore keep the valves B closed, even it it shouldaccumulate in sufflcient volume to force the water out of thevalve-chamber and back into the pipes. As before stated, this hassometimes occurred, and the airyalves will not relieve this abnormalexcesslve air-pressure, and in this condition of affairs therelief-valve becomes exceedingly useful. \Vhen the air collects inchamber-A under such pressure that the automatic airvalves cannotdischarge it, the air will eventually force the water down therein, andwhen so much air is accumulated as will lower the water to a certainlimit in chamber A the float G, which descends with the water, de-

presses lever G and moves valve f away from opening I which then servesas a vent through which the air escapes until the pressure is relievedand the water again rises in chamber A sufficiently to cause the floatto raise the lever-and again close valvef.

The operation of the combined valve will be obvious from theforegoing-that is, the air-valves Will open and close automatically,taking care of sudden or voluminous influx or egress of air in the pipescaused by the ebb and flow of water therein until such pressureaccumulates in the pipe as will close these valves and prevent theirautomatic operation. Then the relief or float valve will take care ofany abnormal collections of air in the chamber A which air accumulatesthere under pressure and on account of such accu mulation prevents theproper flow of water through the pipes.

The small vent-valve f is essential to the operativeness of the valves[3, as without the valve the valves B after being once closed by thepressure of the water and air would be kept closed so long as thepressure was maintained in the pipes, no matter how much air mightcollect therein; but by providing the small relief-valve the automaticoperation of the large valve under all conditions is insured. The largevalves 15 are essential to prevent collapse of the pipes when water issuddenly withdrawn therefrom, and the small vent f would be totallyinadequate on such occasions and the pipes would be crushed by externalpressure, while on the other hand the large valve B would be held closedunder abnormal pressures, and thus the flow of water through the systemwould be materially if not wholly checked. 'lherct'ore the two valveshave a corelation and coaction in that the larger valves would be heldclosed were they not relieved by the action of the smaller valve.

Having thus described my invention, what I therefore claim as new, anddesiretto secure by Letters Patent thereon, is-

l. The combination with the valve-chamber, a trapped-air chamber at oneside of and communicating with the valve-chamber, a float in saidair-chamber, and the auxiliary valve controlled by said float,substantially as described.

2. The combination of the valve-chamber, a trapped-air chamber at oneside'of and communicating with the valve-chamber; with the pivoted leverextending into the air-chamber, a float on said lever within theair-chamber, and the auxiliary valve in the valve-chamber controlled bysaid float whereby the accumulations of air under such excessivepressure as would hold the main air-valves closed will be automaticallyrelieved, substantially as described.

3. In an air-controlling valve, the combination of the two-part casinghaving an airvalve chamber, an air-trapping chamber, a water-inlet inthe bottom of the valve-chamber, the small vent-opening in the top ofthe casing, the pivoted lever extending into the air-chamber, the floaton the end of said lever within the air-chamber, and the valve on saidlever adapted to close the vent-opening when the float is raised,substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. The combination of the valve-casinghaving an inlet-opening, and avent-opening, the inverted-cup-shaped valve adapted to close saidvent-opening and provided with a stem, the removable exterior tubularguide for said stem, and the spring partially surrounding said guide andsupporting said valve-stem, and the baffle-plate below the lower openend of said valve.

5. The combination with the valve-casing, the Water-inlet thereto, thevent-opening in the top of said casing, the valve-seat in said openingprovided with an exteriorly-projecting tubular guide, and the invertedcupshaped valve closed at its upper end and provided with a stemextending through said tubularguide,the spring surrounding said guideand supporting said valve, and a baffle-plate beside the lower open endof said valve, sub stantially as described.

6. The combination of the valve-casing, the water-inlet thereto, thevent-opening in the top of said casing, the removable valve-seat in saidopening provided with a tubular guide, and the inverted-cup-shaped valveclosed at its upper end and provided with a stem eX- tending throughsaid tubular guide; with a washer on the upper end of said stem, theadjusting-nuts for said washer on said stem, the spring surrounding saidguide and supporting said valve, and a battle-plate beside the loweropen end of said valve, substantially as described.

7. The combination of the air-valve chamber having a water-inlet in itsbottom, the vent-openings in its top, the series of invertedcup-shapedair-valves closing said openings provided'with stems projecting abovethe top of the casing and the baffle-plates below and opposite the loweropen ends of said valves, and the exterior superimposed housing or hoodsupported on and attached to said casing and protecting the air-valves,substantially as described.

8. The combination of the casing having an airvalve chamber, awater-inlet in. its bottom, and vent-openings in its top; and the seriesof invertedcup-shaped air-valves closing said Vent-openings and providedwith stems projecting above the top of the casing; with the removablevalve seats and guides and supporting-springs above the casing; thebaffleplates below and opposite the lower open ends of said valvesformed rigidly with the casing; and the housing or hood supporting onsaid casing and extending over and protecting the air-valve guides andsprings, substantially as described.

9. The combination of the valve-casing containing an air-valve chamber,and an air-trap ping chamber and having a water-inlet in the bottom ofthe valve-chamber, and a series of vent-openings in the top of saidchamber, the removable valve-seats in said openings provided withupstanding tubular guides, the inverted-cup-shaped air-valves closingsaid openings, the springs surrounding said guides for equalizing theweight of said air-valves and the baffle-plates opposite the lower endsof said valves formed integral with the casing; with the vent-tube inthe valve-chamber, the pivoted lever extending through the valve-chamberinto the air-chamber, the float on the end of said lever within theair-chamber, and the valve on said lever near the pivot thereof adaptedto close the vent-tube, all substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I aftiX my signaturein presence of two witnesses.

ELLIS L. ROWE.

In presence of- R. J. RAsMUsER, MILTON E. ABLETT.

